Test-retest reliability, feasibility and clinical correlates of the Eurofit test battery in people with bipolar disorder

Abstract

The physical health of people with bipolar disorder is poorer in comparison to the general population, with an increased prevalence of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. Due to the established beneficial effects, there is growing interest in the promotion of physical activity and in particular the accurate measurement of physical fitness in this population. Currently, no existing measures of physical fitness used in the general population have been tested for validity and reliability among people with bipolar disorder. Therefore, we examined the reproducibility, feasibility and correlates of the Eurofit test battery in people with bipolar disorder. From 24 men (43.0±13.0 years) and 22 women (43.9±10.2 years) with bipolar disorder two trials of the Eurofit test, administered within three days, were analyzed. All Eurofit items showed good reproducibility with intraclass correlation coefficients ranging from 0.71 for the whole body balance test to 0.98 for the handgrip force test. Significant correlations with Eurofit test items were found with age, illness duration, body mass index, smoking behavior, mean daily lithium dosage, and depressive and lifetime hypomanic symptoms. The current study demonstrates that the Eurofit test can be recommended for evaluating the physical fitness of inpatients with bipolar disorder.

Keywords: Bipolar disorder; Exercise; Mood; Physical activity; Physical fitness.